Iran Urged To Ensure Safety Of India-Bound Ships After Hormuz Firing

NEW DELHI -The Ministry of External Affairs said Iran’s Ambassador to India, Mohammad Fathali, was called in for a meeting with Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri over the shooting incident involving Indian vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.

During the meeting, India conveyed deep concern over the incident involving two Indian-flagged ships that came under fire from gunboats of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), though the tanker and crew were reported safe.

According to the MEA, the Iranian Ambassador undertook to convey India’s concerns to the authorities in Tehran.

Iran announced on April 18 that control of the Strait of Hormuz had “reverted to its previous state” amid the continuing U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports.

Iran’s Khatam al-Anbia Central Headquarters spokesperson was quoted by the country’s semi-official Tasnim news agency as saying that the Strait of Hormuz is under “strict control” of the Iranian Armed Forces and will remain in its previous operational state.

The spokesperson said that under the pretext of a blockade, the United States continued acts of “sea robbery” and “piracy” with repeated breaches of commitments and a history of misconduct, due to which “control over the Strait of Hormuz has been returned to its previous state, and this strategic waterway is under strict management and control by the Armed Forces”. (IANS)